Dearly Beloved.

“Dearly beloved. We are gathered here today to get through this thing called… Life.”

Prince, Let’s Go Crazy (1984)

Life After Death

I had a terrible weekend. Didn’t everyone? It’s not all bad, though. There are some lovely write-ups around the web, so won’t repeat what’s already been said. How many times can one say “genius” before it gets old?

What’s Going On?

Great artists are fearless. Prince wandered through the same politically-aware, sexually-charged waters that the great Marvin Gaye did a generation before.

Stories will surface, like Questlove?’s crushing-but-hilarious tale:

Purple Haze

Maybe Prince was important to me because he allowed me to dial-in to Hendrix, re-connecting rock music to my identity. I couldn’t believe it to see him in Purple Rain; my hero re-incarnate, reborn, resplendent. Black cultural production is nothing if not constant innovation and a breaking with the old, although there may be darker reasons for such creative fury.

Diggin’ In The Crates

For the eagle-eyed, nuggets like this will turn up alongside, perhaps, the vault of unreleased music he is rumoured to have in the basement at Paisley Park. Here’s a wonderful interview from 1985. I love it.

Mostly though, I’m going to dance my arse off and party like it’s 1999. Thanks for the music, brother.